Re-evaluating doesn't mean failing

 

We’re what feels like 18 weeks in to a 50-week January – when in reality it’s two weeks since I wrote my blog post outlining my exciting, challenging and ambitious goals and targets for the year.

Have I kept on track for them all?

No

Am I any less excited and motivated for the year?

Also no.

Let me explain why.

I could be in a few different headspaces after the first couple of weeks of the year. I’ve spent a bit of time down with a chest infection that I’d been fighting off for weeks for one thing, and for another, it took me just 12 days to change my mind about holding off the alcohol for an extended period.

As a result, it would be really easy, and quite understandable, for me to be beating myself up, full of self-pity and regret. But that mindset really wouldn’t be helpful, for so many reasons.

Instead, I’m focusing on the positives and everything that’s gone well so far.

Running

The chest infection and resulting days of rest really wasn’t ideal. I haven’t been fully well since the start of December with a nasty cough lingering on all over the Christmas period. But it had been manageable – until last weekend. I set about what was supposed to be a long-ish Sunday run and had to abandon it just before one mile in because I really didn’t feel well and thought I was going more harm than good. Despite a trip to the Doctor the next day and his prescription for rest and anti-biotics for the rest of the week, I couldn’t help feel a mixture of worry and also FOMO at not running for the next few days when Des and my friends and fellow marathon trainees stacked up their weekly milage.

By Thursday, feeling loads better I decided I’ve had one last rest day to be on the safe side, then go big on Friday to bank some miles. I set off before 7am and worked my way through 10 miles with an excellent Spotify playlist for company, finishing up in a respectable time and giving myself a well-needed confidence boost and much needed endorphin top-up.

Drinking

Then there’s the drinking side of it – my train of thought on Saturday, and what lead me deciding to enjoy a drink with my friends. We were on the annual DOrunning winter away day, which is always quite a boozy affair, so I knew it was going to be a challenge. Normally, we do parkrun then head to the nearest pub for breakfast and a pint before setting about bar-hopping around London for the rest of the day. This year was no different on the face of it, apart from the fact my breakfast came with a pint of diet coke and for a good chunk of the day I enjoyed soft drinks while Des and some of my friends opted for their alcoholic drinks of choice.

And to be honest, it didn’t bother me as much as I thought it would do. I thought every order would be a battle of wills in my head, but it really felt pretty simple. Then, a good few hours into the day, I started to weigh things up a little bit. On similar days in the past, by this point I’d have been a good five-or-so pints in. But this time, the thought came to me that I could enjoy a couple of drinks at this point without tipping the balance and taking it too far.

So I did just that! I savoured a few pints in the last couple of bars we went to, then got some wine for the train which I enjoyed during the journey without feeling the need to finish the bottle ‘because I’d started it’. Regardless, I still got up on Sunday morning, took Stanny on his morning walk before joining some fellow DOrunners for a nice 10km run, so no real impact on what I’d have done had I not had a drink on Saturday.

Onwards

If working in marketing has taught me anything over the years, it’s that targets and priorities are made to be revisited and tweaked, and I’m going to tweak that big drinking goal I set myself. I’m not seeing it as a failure but I’m just changing the goalposts a bit without letting it impact what I’m ultimately trying to achieve. So instead of not drinking at all, I’ve got a couple of days lined up that I’ll be having a couple of drinks – and enjoying them without guilt!

As for the running, I’m a little bit behind my target, but the hard work I’ve put on the days I have been well enough to do so means that I’ve not got too much work to do in the second half of the month. I should still fairly easily hit the 80 mile mark and be on-track (hopefully even get ahead) for the rest of the year.

It’s all a little bit more topical because I write this today on “Blue Monday”, supposedly the most miserable day of the year. And while I know it’s not so simple for everyone, I find keeping your mindset as positive as possible is one of the best ways to banish those January blues!

A lovely day!